Infant playyard

ABSTRACT

An infant playyard including a movable mattress which may be laid on the bottom of the playyard to support babies and also may be directly formed or folded into a U-shape to create a housing enclosure. The mattress is fastened to connecting elements for hanging on the upper peripheral rims of the playyard body to adjust the height of the mattress. Thus production cost may be reduced, package size does not increase, and carrying is easier. The connecting elements may also include an adjusting member to adjust the elevation to suit the user&#39;s height.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to an infant playyard that has a movable mattress which is mountable on the bottom of the playyard body to support a baby and is fastenable to connecting elements for adjusting the elevation thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Playyards generally have a foldable frame to facilitate carrying and transportation. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,437 discloses a foldable playyard that has frame assemblies and fabric panels to form an enclosure to house a baby. It also has a mattress to support the baby. As the mattress is made from relatively hard and elastic materials, and the frame assemblies must be foldable, the mattress generally is folded and encases the folded frame assemblies from the outside. As the playyard mainly aims at confining a bigger and older baby, in order to prevent the baby from roaming outside the playyard, the enclosure must be of a certain height. Those babies still not capable of standing usually lie on the mattress. When parents want to take the baby out or change diapers, it is cumbersome to stoop inside the playyard to reach and hold the baby. To remedy this problem, a dual-bed playyard has been developed. It mainly has an extra mattress in addition to the floor mattress to reduce the depth and make usage more convenient. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 6,192,535 discloses such a structure. Because such a structure has an additional mattress located above the floor mattress, it must be carried separately. Hence, the dual-bed playyard has a larger size and is more difficult to carry. It also costs more to produce. Moreover, the length of the dual-bed mattress is fixed. It cannot be adjusted to a desired elevation to suit the user's need. Hence it is inconvenient to use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] In view of the foregoing disadvantages, the primary object of the invention is to provide an infant playyard that has a movable mattress. The movable mattress may be disposed on the bottom of the playyard to support a baby, and can also directly form or be folded into a U-shape to become a housing enclosure. It is fastened to connecting elements for hanging on the upper peripheral rims of the playyard so that the elevation of the mattress may be adjusted as desired. Production cost is lower, package size does not increase, and carrying is easier. Moreover, the connecting elements may include adjusting members to enable users to adjust the elevation of the mattress to suit the user's physical height.

[0004] The foregoing, as well as additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings. The description and drawings are only to serve for reference and illustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the playyard body of the invention.

[0006]FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the invention in a folded condition.

[0007]FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the invention with the movable mattress adjusted to a selected height.

[0008]FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the movable mattress of the invention.

[0009]FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the invention with the movable mattress adjusted to a selected height.

[0010]FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the invention for adjusting the movable mattress to a selected height.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0011] Referring to FIG. 1, the infant playyard of the invention mainly includes a playyard body 1 and a movable mattress 2. The playyard body 1 mainly includes a foldable frame 11 and fabric layers 12 covering the periphery of the foldable frame 11 and the bottom of the body. The fabric layers 12 are foldable with the frame 11.

[0012] The movable mattress 2 includes a mattress body 21 and connecting elements 22. The mattress body 21 is made from a board encased by fabric and an elastic element (such as a sponge, not shown in the drawing). The mattress body 21 has folding lines 211 to facilitate folding. When the frame 11 is folded, the mattress body 21 may form a U-shape to cover the frame from the outside to facilitate storing and carrying (as shown in FIG. 2).

[0013] Referring to FIG. 4, each of the connecting elements 22 includes a connecting section 23 and a hanging member 24 fastened to the periphery of the mattress body 21. According to the invention, fastening may be achieved temporarily through zippers or Velcro tape, or be done permanently by stitching. In addition, an adjusting member 25 may be included for adjusting the length of the connecting section 23 to suit the user's height for adjusting the height of the mattress body 21 (as shown in FIG. 6).

[0014] Referring to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, when in use, the playyard body 1 is extended. The movable mattress 2 may be placed on the bottom of the playyard body 1 by stuffing the connecting elements 22 under the bottom of the mattress 2 or temporarily removing the connecting elements 22 for supporting a bigger or older baby. When altering the movable mattress 2, fold the mattress body 21 along the folding lines 211 to become a U-shape, then hang the mattress body 21 on the playyard above the bottom thereof by means of the hanging members 24 of the connecting elements 22 to change the height of the movable mattress 2 (as shown in FIG. 6).

[0015] By means of the construction, assembly and operation set forth above, the movable mattress of the infant playyard provided by invention may be selectively adjusted to a desired height. Production cost is reduced and convenience of carrying improves.

[0016] While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been set forth for the purpose of disclosure, modifications of the disclosed embodiment of the invention as well as other embodiments thereof may occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover all embodiments which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An infant playyard, comprising at least: a playyard body having a foldable frame and four peripheral sides and a bottom to encase the frame to form a play enclosure; and a movable mattress including a mattress body and a connecting element; wherein the movable mattress is selectively laid on the bottom of the playyard body, or hung on an upper rim of the peripheral sides of the playyard body through the connecting element to increase the elevation of the movable mattress.
 2. The infant playyard of claim 1, wherein the movable mattress has a folding lines to allow the movable mattress to be folded in U-shape.
 3. The infant playyard of claim 1, wherein the playyard body and the connecting element are fastened by a zipper.
 4. The infant playyard of claim 1, wherein the playyard body and the connecting element are fastened by stitching.
 5. The infant playyard of claim 1, wherein the connecting element includes a connecting section and a hanging member for hanging on the upper rim of the peripheral sides of the playyard body.
 6. The infant playyard of claim 5, wherein the connecting section includes an adjusting member for adjusting the length of the connecting section. 